Page 53 of Toadstools and Vampire Kisses

“You were my queen,” I agree. “But that stopped being the case a very long time ago, and there is nothing you can offer me that will bring me to your side. You seem to have failed even now to realize that I have ceased wanting anything from you. You should have stayed dead, Titania.”

“Wretch! I will not die by some witch’s hand,” she snarls, her face contorting once more into a terrible sneer.

I shrug, unconcerned, and look back to my mate. Fran watches me silently, her face expressionless, the green light playing ethereally over her skin so that it takes on a ghostly appearance, and I step away from Titania to join her by her side. The relief that flits across my mate’s face pains me, but I understand. Titania and I have a complicated past, and there was once a time that I might have considered being by her side. I am glad I proved to be smarter than that.

“No, you will not. You would be lucky to have such a fate,” a deep voice growls as Ulrek materializes in a poof of dark feathers, which explains how he caught up so easily. He eyes Titania contemptuously as she shrieks, cleaving a thick cluster of vines beneath her dragon claw before blasting a dropping branch with a dark bolt of magic with her free hand.

Ulrek clicks his tongue and gives a pitying shake of his head. “As it happens, Queen Isadora wishes to deal with you personally for the raids, attacks, and deaths within our territory. Strictly speaking she believed it was Rowan Algriech, but I believe we have enough witnesses to demonstrate that you are the one who is responsible, in addition to attacking the Durmont coven who live within our agreed-upon boundaries. So the witch will not be killing you—though your males are not enjoying that same luxury—but if Fran and Reynard will be so kind to move this along, we will be on our way.”

He gives me a knowing look, and I nod. There is one easy solution. Facing Titania, I draw my wings high, tipping one just enough to peer back at Fran and mouth ‘ready?’ Her head moves in a small nod, and I face forward once more, opening my wings to their full span. They drag through the air, pulling the winds with my power and drawing them back so that they whip back and forth over Titania with every snap of my wings. The wind pitches around her and she sends a bolt of draining magic into me, but I fan my wings harder, ignoring the sensation of weakness filling me. I just need to do this a little longer.

Titania stumbles with a powerful gust and shrieks, falling to her knees. Her dragon claw spins wildly to protect herself, but the plant life snaps around her like dozens of starving beasts descending to feed. As Fran’s hands whip through the air, the plants ensnare the vampiress, twisting around and around her as she continues to scream and flail. Something snaps sharply and bits of bone fall out from the mass of weaving plants, the dragon claw crumbling and returning to the earth where it rightly belongs.

I grab ahold of the air and tug it toward me, tearing her scream right from her lungs. She thrashes in her prison, but Ulrek holds up a hand just as her movement slows, and I release the hold on her air despite my own desires. If Queen Isadora personally wants the pleasure of ending the queen of the Algriech coven, I shall have to just satisfy myself with Rowan’s well-deserved demise. I watch almost dispassionately with only a hint of frustration as Ulrek approaches the mass of plants imprisoning Titania. He does not touch them but instead leans forward and whispers something that draws a trail of power from between his lips.

Straightening, he gives me a firm look as he brushes off his coat. “Well, that is that. The sleep will hold her until we return to Isadora’s court.”

Relieved that it is over, I peer at Fran and smile as the light of her power fades. She sways a little on her feet, and I hurry to her side, my arms out to steady her. The plants around her withdraw as she falls forward into my embrace, her body too chilled for my liking with its excessive use of energy. Curling myself around her, I surround my mate with my warmth. Her eyes flutter closed and my brow wrinkles as I stroke my hand over her face. Careful not to jar her, I lift her up into my arms and glance over at Ulrek, who has presently taken a seat on Titania’s tangled cage.

“I will send either Jace or Connor to help you remove your captive, but I must get Fran inside and to bed where she can recover.”

He inclines his head solemnly but squints at me as he ponders my words. “The contraption is unnecessary. I will remove her from her moorings here shortly. Now that she sleeps and is unaware of all of this, the danger from her has passed. See to your mate, but say your goodbyes while you are at it. We must return to Isadora immediately. That means you as well,” he adds, interrupting my protest. “You are the chief witness to everything that has happened here and a death dealer with a known honorable reputation. You will need to stand witness… Then you can return.” His face softens slightly, and he gives an amused shake of his head. “It is not often that males in our respective lines of work find what you have. But first, we must fulfill our duty. You will have centuries yet with your mate.”

“She will be frightened and upset to awake without me here,” I growl, my arms tightening around her. “I will not leave her.”

A speculative look crosses Ulrek’s face. “She will sleep for many hours, likely a whole day after this if not two. We cannot wait, Reynard. You know your duty and mine. The entire coven will hold you answerable to what has happened, and your cousin needs to return promptly to recuperate.” He glances at Fran’s sleeping face. “Truthfully, it will be kinder if you leave now so that you can hurry back to her rather than being forced to watch you leave when she’s feeling weak and vulnerable.”

I grit my teeth and stalk away with my mate in my arms, unable to dismiss that he is right. I need to return quickly so I can be the one to care for my mate rather than forcing her to watch me walk away when she needs me most. Still, that does not relieve the ache in my heart as I carry her back to her home with all of the Durmont coven descending upon us. I want to snap at them to back away but hold my tongue, stopping only to exchange a long look of shared pain with Katherine, held steady by Adeon’s hands on her shoulders. The pair of them follow me up to Fran’s room while waving off the rest of the well-wishers. Katherine touches my arm briefly with a whisper of thanks before pulling a chair near Fran’s bed and sinking into it.

“I need to go to see to it that Titania is held accountable for what she has done here,” I choke out miserably, but Katherine nods as if she suspected as much.

Her cheeks are tear-streaked as she looks up at me, her mouth trembling in a faint smile. “It’s what those of us who are burdened with duty must do. She will be okay,” she murmurs, stroking back her daughter’s hair from her face with one hand. “She just needs to rest and get better.” She blinks rapidly, drawing a breath and glances to me. “Just hurry back.”

“I shall,” I reply, then hesitate. “Perhaps have the oldest girl brought up to help her mend. She has a way with healing, I am told.”

Katherine looks at me in surprise but gives me a grateful nod before returning to her vigil at her daughter’s side. Adeon grunts and strides over to me, his large hand clasping my arm and his gold-green eyes scanning my features.

“Back to normal, I see,” he rumbles.

“So it seems.”

He glances away and rubs at an eyebrow as if struggling with something. “Look, just get yourself back soon so I’m not sent out hunting for you. The cities are miserable places to be.”

“I know. I swear I will return the moment I can. There is nothing to keep me from Fran—as you understand.”

He nods, his eyes sparkling as the golden flecks brighten like fire. “So I do. Safe journeys.”

“Thank you.” I glance back at my mate and swallow back the emotion threatening to spill forth. “Please tell my mate… remind her that I love her and that no force can keep me away.”

“I’ll see to it,” he rumbles, and I incline my head in thanks before making my way quietly from the room.

Without looking back, I hurry away to rejoin the others. They are grim as they meet me. Titania lies slumbering against the wall where she sits on the third row of seats in the utility vehicle, with Jace and Connor piled in warily beside her so that Jack can lie comfortably in the middle seats, his sleeping expression relaxed. No matter the distance, I will be leaving my heart behind here.

ChapterThirty

FRAN

Islept for three fucking days and waited another four at my mother’s house out of some foolish hope that one morning I would awake and Reynard would be bounding up the front steps for me. But that day never came. Nor did it come the second week I was there, though my mother tried to ease my mind with various scenarios she could come up with that might have delayed him. Finally, by the beginning of the third week, I decided to pack it up and return home with Beast. I never expected my cabin to feel so empty, nor for the days and weeks to drag by as I worry what might have happened.

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